Leo Zhang/Shanghai Daily news

China yesterday set up a fund to protect investors' interests when brokers they entrust money with get into financial trouble.
The fund will pay money that brokerages owe investors in cases they go bankrupt, close or are taken over by the government, the China Securities Regulatory Commission said in a statement, without revealing the fund size.
The fund's money will initially come from interest income linked to investors' subscriptions to new shares as well as loans from the central bank, according to the statement. Later, the size of the fund will be bolstered by contributions from brokerages and stock exchange commissions.
Chinese mainland brokerages are expected to contribute between 0.5 percent and 5 percent of their revenues to the fund. A portion of the transaction commissions from the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges will also be included, the statement said.
China's key stock indexes have halved from 2001 highs and repeatedly trod eight-year lows from the start of the year as scandals involving several broking firms and poor corporate governance hurt investor confidence.
The Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks both yuan-denominated and hard-currency shares, extended to its fifth year of decline when it dumped 8.3 percent earlier this year.
The index rose 2.10 percent to 1,155.48 yesterday.